Alcohol-poisoning is a life-threatening condition, however it needn't end in tragedy.

The most important stage in treating alcohol poisoning lies not within an emergency room, but in the early identification and recognition of the symptoms of alcohol poisoning, and their prompt treatment. This can only be done by those in the company of the person suffering from alcohol poisoning. To discover how to spot the signs of alcohol poisoning, read Alcohol Poisoning Symptoms.

Equally important is how fast first-aid can be delivered to the victim.

Treatment for Alcohol Poisoning:Drunk or Acute Alcohol Poisoning?

While treatments for alcohol poisoning aren’t complicated, many wait too long before they get treatment (for themselves or others) because:

they are under-age.

they are ashamed of the state they (or others) have got themselves into.

Furthermore, there exists amongst many a stark apathy about the actual symptoms of alcohol poisoning- which may lead to the sufferer and others around him or her to simply assume that he/she’s merely ‘drunk’.

All of which may lead to the sufferer's condition being ignored and thus endangering his/her life.

Treatment for Alcohol Poisoning:What YOU can do before medical help arrives

Any sufferer who persists in falling asleep should be woken immediately at all costs. Use cold water, shake them or, in extreme circumstances subject them to pain stimulus.

The victim should, by no means, be sent home and to bed in the assumption that he/she will be able to just ‘sleep it off'. Sending a victim of alcohol poisoning home is akin to sending a heart attack victim home, unsupervised, depriving him/her of life-saving medical treatments which may ultimately result in death.

Call for an ambulance immediately should you suspect that someone around you has crossed his/her body’s threshold for alcohol ingestion. Upon the arrival of the ambulance, inform medical personnel of what other drugs (prescription or otherwise) have been ingested by the victim along with alcohol. The volatile cocktail of drink and drugs account for roughly a third of all drug-overdose cases in the United States alone.

As effective a means of purging unwanted substances from our bodies as vomiting is, an unconscious person stands a high risk of choking on his/her own vomit due to the incapacitation of his/her bodily functions. To avoid this, turn a victim to lie sideways so as to open the airways and prevent them from getting clogged with vomit.

Hypothermia, commonly suffered by alcohol poisoning victims, should be avoided by covering the affected individual with warm blankets or coats.

The common perception that a cold shower actually helps to overcome drunkenness and alcohol poisoning is entirely false, given that doing so will heighten the chances of the victim suffering from hypothermia.

Treatment for Alcohol Poisoning:At the Hospital

Once at the hospital somebody suffering from acute alcohol poisoning may undergo the following procedures:

If there has been loss of fluid from excessive vomiting and perspiration, the administration of fluids intravenously can help the body rehydrate and make up for substantial fluid loss.

As an additional measure, glucose may be administered as a treatment to regulate the blood-sugar level of the victim and to warm the body.

A careful watch will be kept over the breathing patterns of the victim, and keeping him/her awake is also essential in the treatment of alcohol poisoning.
This reduces the possibility of the person slipping into a state of coma drastically and pains should always be taken to ensure that the victim, under no circumstances, drifts off into a sleep that he/she may just not wake up from.

The individual’s stomach may be pumped to remove any extraneous alcohol that remains unprocessed.

In more severe cases, a kidney dialysis is also applied to rid the alcohol from the blood stream.

Acute alcohol poisoning is not just a state of drunkenness, it is a serious condition that can be life-threatening. Knowing the signs of alcohol poisoning and the treatment for alcohol poisoning can literally save lives.

If in doubt as to whether someone is suffering from alcohol poisoning, err on the side of caution and call the emergency services.

If you found this page helpful then you may well find the following links helpful:

Free E-Books

Site Info.

Deborah Morrow, M.S. Addiction Psychology, is the director of treatment programs for The Alcoholism Guide website. In her practice Deborah provides on-line coaching and support for those dependent on alcohol or who require other services such as relapse prevention or court mandated services. (Read More)